Saintpaulia ionantha. 
xe2x80x98Everlovexe2x80x99.
The present invention comprises a new and distinct cultivar of African Violet plant, botanically known as Saintpaulia ionantha, and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name xe2x80x98EverLovexe2x80x99.
The new cultivar was referred to during the breeding and selection process by the designation xe2x80x98R 28/5xe2x80x99 and is a product of a planned breeding program. The new cultivar originated from a cross made by the inventor, Reinhold Holtkamp, Sr., in the controlled breeding program Nashville, Tenn. The female, or seed parent was a cultivar designated xe2x80x98P 40/9 white muflo Biexe2x80x99 (unpatented). The male, or pollen parent was a cultivar designated xe2x80x98Q 6/2xe2x80x99 (unpatented). xe2x80x98P 40/9 white muflo Biexe2x80x99 was produced from plants derived from African Violet seeds incubated for 6 years in a weightless environment in space on the Long Duration Exposure Facility.
In comparison to the instant plant, the female parent is a cultivar having white flowers without the light green edge, compact and multiflorescent. The male parent is a cultivar having purple-red flowers with white edges, semi-double, frilled, and non-multiflorescent. The flowers have a less vibrant purplish color than the flowers of xe2x80x98EverLovexe2x80x99, and lacks the light green edge. The leaves of the male parent are medium green and plain whereas the leaves of xe2x80x98EverLovexe2x80x99 are dark green and crenate.
xe2x80x98EverLovexe2x80x99 was discovered and selected by the inventor as a flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross in a controlled environment in Nashville, Tenn. Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by leaf cuttings, as performed by the inventor in Nashville, Tenn., has demonstrated that the combination of characteristics as herein disclosed for the new cultivar are firmly fixed and retained through successive generations of asexual reproduction. The new cultivar reproduces true-to-type.
xe2x80x98EverLovexe2x80x99 has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary significantly with variations in environment such as temperature, light intensity and day length without any change in genotype. The following observations, measurements and values describe the new cultivar as grown in Nashville, Tenn. and Haffen, Germany under greenhouse conditions which closely approximate those generally used in commercial practice.
The following characteristics have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be basic characteristics of xe2x80x98EverLovexe2x80x99, which in combination distinguish this African Violet as a new and distinct cultivar:
1) Multiflorescence characteristic;
2) A single crown as large as 30-40 cm in diameter;
3) Strong, upright flower stems curving slightly toward the center;
4) Single violet-shaped bright purplish-red flowers with wide, wavy light pink edges ending with a finely frilled greenish edge, particularly on the 2 smaller petals;
5) Each plant carries 10-14, and sometimes more, upright flower stems each of which carries 13-18, and sometimes more, flowers;
6) Long-lasting, non-dropping flowers;
7) Vigorous and compact growth;
8) Plant saleable 12-13 weeks after potting;
9) Seed capsules are visible above the petals;
10) Dark green, wavy, heart-shaped leaves; and
11) After maturity the flowers dry off, and remain on the peduncle without becoming infected by Botrytis.
The new cultivar is most similar to xe2x80x98EverHarmonyxe2x80x99 (U.S. Plant patent application Ser. No. 10/046,984). Both cultivars have the same parents and display the multiflorescence trait, have the same extra large growth habit and same type leaves and flower shape with the greenish edge. However, xe2x80x98EverLovexe2x80x99 has bright purplish-red flowers with a wide light pink edge and finely frilled greenish edge and dark green leaves whereas xe2x80x98EverHarmonyxe2x80x99 has bi-colored white and light pink flowers and medium green leaves.